33 Weeks Pt. 2

Whew... I am tired. I'm in the home stretch now and I really understand what it means to be DONE being pregnant. Let me start by saying my baby dropped at the end of last week and stayed that way until Tuesday of this week. It was so unbearably uncomfortable that all I wanted to do was lie down and sleep it away. Unfortunately there was work and my sister-in-law's birthday. Work was a little more difficult to manoeuvre but the birthday party was great because Paul looked after our son while I sat for most of it. But as of now, baby has decided it's much more comfy being out of my pelvis and I am truly grateful!

As for other events, the three of us went to my in-laws trailer a couple of weekends ago. It was nice to get away for a weekend and I'm looking foreword to doing it again before the new baby arrives. I don't know if that will be possible because Paul and I still have most of the nursery to finish. And of course the more I think about how much time is left in my pregnancy, the more excited I get. I see Pauly walking around on his own and playing with his cousins and it makes me realize how much he's grown in the last 13 months. It makes me miss the quiet times we used to have together when he was only a few weeks old. At night I used to take him from the bassinet to feed him and as he nursed I'd fall asleep with him in my arms. It was never for too long but seeing him asleep in my arms made me want to squeeze him. And since Pauly is sleeping through the night, I know I'll have the chance to do it all again. At least for the first little while. I'm not exactly sure how Pauly is going to adjust to a younger sibling but I think he'll do fine considering he loves other kids.

I also saw the midwife last week and everything is looking good. She gave me my charts to carry around in case anything happens and I've got to go to the nearest hospital. But of course it's all precautions. I am really hoping not to go into labour before 37 weeks as I have officially decided to have a home water birth. I've still got some supplies to gather but it's nothing major. The biggest item will be the birthing pool which I rented form Meredith Ballaban. I get to pick it up two weeks before my due date. The decision to have a home birth is really sitting well with everyone too. The midwives and our doula Jody are very excited. Even Paul is looking foreword to the experience.

This week my lil' bean is weighing in at a little over 4 pounds, about as much as a pineapple, and is just over 19 inches long. He/she can listen, feel, see and is still gaining fat. There isn't much change except for his/her size and before I know it there'll be a newborn in my arms.

40 Weeks

What a shitty weekend. I'll start with the worst news which happened on Friday but actually started Thursday night.
Chloe and Kane were making their way up from the basement but, when Kane got to the stairs he didn't want to climb them. It was a baffling situation but after some treats and encouragement, Paul and I got him upstairs. The rest of the night was fine but in the morning Kane had a little trouble getting down the deck stairs and then he wouldn't come up. And this time there was no amount of treats or coaxing that would get him up. In the end, Paul had to walk him through the gate and in the side door. He struggled up the few steps leading into the kitchen and then wouldn't sit. We knew something was wrong and since Paul was leaving for work we'd have to take him to the emergency vet later on.

What happened was worse than we could have imagined. Soon after Paul left I tried to get Kane to sit, but he wouldn't. I got really worried and started to massage and feel around his back legs and spine. He didn't cry out in pain or give any sign that he was uncomfortable. I kept trying to get him to sit and this time he did but, halfway down his legs gave out and his but hit the pillow. He sat for a few seconds and then laid down. I scratched behind his ears, told him he was a good boy and started folding the laundry.

The two dogs slept side by side for hours, which is very normal. At 6:00pm the neighbour came home and that's the exact moment I knew something was very wrong. Both dogs perked up and started barking but, it was only Chloe that ran for the door. I went to Kane and spent the next 10 - 15 minutes trying to get him to stand, but of course he wouldn't. When I tried to move his back legs, it was just dead weight. It really freaked my out and I didn't know what to do. Paul called just then, wanting to know how Kane was doing. I explained everything and he got really worried too. I spent most of the evening on the floor with Kane but eventually got up to eat. I had only been gone for 10 minutes before he started whining. I tried feeding him his food but he wouldn't take it. I thought maybe he was tired of lying on that side so I got some treats and tried to get him to sit up. He did, but you could see it was a major struggle. I helped keep him steady and quickly shifted his back legs so he could lie on the other side of his body. He was calm until I finished dinner and then started to whine again. Paul was going to be home in 1.5 hours so I went back to the floor. I put his head in my lap and was scratching behind his ears. I gave him belly rubs and was talking to him most of the time. When Paul got home he looked Kane over and, as quickly as possible, got Kane into the backseat of the truck. We drove to the vet in brampton and hoped for the best. No such luck.

After a physical exam, a shot of morphine and x-rays, the vet told us the bad news. For some reason, the disc in one of Kane's vertebrae had moved out of place and it was pinching his spinal cord. Until this was corrected, he wouldn't have the use of his legs and even then, there was no guarantee that is was correctable. The three available options for us were:
1-Keep him on a mild dose of morphine. Confine him to a crate for 6-8 weeks so as not to disturb his vertebrae and hope the disc would go back. The problem with this was that he would be soiling his crate, and it was unlikely he would get better.
2-Have an MRI done to determine the exact reason behind the disc moving out and then operate to place it back in. There was also no guarantee that this would make things better and of course it would cost us anywhere between $5000 - $15000. That was money we didn't have.
3-Relieve his suffering and put him down.
I can tell you it wasn't an easy decision and because we were expecting our lil' bean at any moment, we really didn't have a choice. Sadly, Kane died on June 12 at 2:30am. As sad as it was, Paul & I knew it was the best we could have done for him.

And since this post is already so long I'll just make note of the other things that have happened.

I went to the Safety Superstore to buy my stroller but apparently the kiwi colour is a special order. So now my Peg Perego Pliko P3 is on it's way.

To keep our minds off of Kane's death, we went out to car dealerships to visually look at the SUV's we'd been searching on-line. It was fun and daunting at the same time. The good thing about it is that I think we've settled on buying a Honda CR-V.

The nursery is finally complete. Paul finished painting the doors and they have been hung. Everything looks really great.

I've started to have more back pain and it may be because the lil' bean is dropping more. Other than that, I'm still feeling pretty good. Getting a little impatient but what can I do. He'll come when he's ready.

And at 40 weeks there's not much to report about. My lil' bean should weigh about 7.5 pounds, the size of a small pumpkin. And he should be approximately 20 inches long. I'll just have to sit back and be patient.

37 Weeks

Another week has gone by and it has turned out to be a good one. I'll start with the fact that my sciatica pain is nonexistent. As the days passed, it slowly got less painful and is now completely gone. I don't know if it'll be back but I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Some accomplishments this week are all centred in the nursery. The lil' bean's room is painted and furnished. Originally the walls were supposed to be a tan colour but at the last minute Paul decided that he wanted to make them green & blue. It wasn't such a big deal to me so I agreed. It actually looks pretty cute. As for the furniture, we had the crib in it's box but the dresser was giving us problems. It seems Babies R Us didn't really know what was going on and kept promising things and wouldn't follow through. I got tired of the run around and spent some time finding out which location had the dresser in the store. So after about 2 months of broken promises and waiting, I found the dresser at the Oakville store. Hurray! It came in one piece so that was the easiest to set up. Paul then spent the rest of the weekend putting together the crib and bassinet. The finishing touches included the blinds and the rug. We still need to get a rod for the curtains and Paul needs to install the new doors. But all in all, it's looking real well.

Since Paul & I are movie people, we decided to spend our last long weekend sans baby at the drive-in. We invited some friends and had a great time. We were a little late getting there so when we pulled into the queue and saw that the screen we wanted was sold out, we were a little disappointed. Our friends were already inside and we had to decide if we were going to see one of the other two screens. As we pulled up to the booth, the lady told us she could sell us tickets for the one we originally wanted but if we didn't get a good spot, she couldn't give us a refund. We agreed and ended up parking behind our friends. The first movie playing was Shrek The Final Chapter, and after that a lot of families left and we ended up moving into a great spot. The second movie was Iron Man 2 which I didn't really like. It was a little boring and I did fall asleep through some parts of it. The third movie was She's Out of Your League. I thought it was going to suck but it turned out to be somewhat funny. Definitely worth a rental but not much else. And the last movie was Shutter Island. I saw the first 20 minutes and then fell asleep. It piqued my interest so I'm probably going to rent it. All in all I had a great time.

I saw my midwife this past week and things are still looking good. I met one of the midwifery students who will probably be involved in the rest of my pregnancy. She seems nice but you could tell she was a little nervous. I'm sure as time goes on she'll become a little more comfortable with things. She's not solely responsible for any of the important things and will only be a spectator during labour & delivery. As per the discussion we had the last visit, I had my GBS swab done. I'm aiming for no IV so hopefully the test will come back negative. I should know when I see my midwife again next week.

And since I'm getting closer to my due date, I've finally picked out an outfit for the lil' bean to come home from the hospital with. I was trying to find something cute but everything I liked was more that $40 and that just wasn't acceptable. So I ended up with a long sleeved diaper shirt, cotton pants, socks and shoes. The shirt is white with two yellow giraffes on it. The pants are a light yellow. The socks are white and the shoes are white and blue. I have yet to pick out a hat but I'm sure I'll get some for my baby shower.

Now at 37 weeks my lil' bean is full term and will probably not need to spend any time in the NICU. He is fully developed and is still only gaining weight. Right now he should weigh a little over 6 pounds and is about the length of a stalk of Swiss chard, which is approximately 19 inches long. It's hard to stay patient but I know my lil' bean will be here soon enough.

36 Weeks

So I'm in my last month and it really hasn't been too bad. I've heard of women feeling sick and moody throughout their entire pregnancy and I have been lucky enough not to be one of them. I've had my share of aches and pains, but for the most part I've felt great. This past week has been one of those not so good weeks. I've been experiencing sciatica pains for the later half of the day, almost every day. I can't remember exactly what set it off, but I've been trying to take it easy. With each day that passes the pain seems to be less and less so I'm hoping it won't be with me for the rest of my pregnancy.

There has been another type of pain that has started this week as well. A pain in the ass that was unavoidable...street construction. The city has resumed it's sewer and water main replacement and I don't like it at all. But I suppose I can look on the bright side and remember that the sooner they get this over and done with, the sooner I get my backyard back. They aren't ripping apart anything else on our property so the noise isn't as bad as it was last summer, but it's the dust that's getting to me. It's all over my car and the window screens on the house. I like leaving the windows open at night but if I don't remember to close them before I go to bed, the dust travels into the house and then I've got extra cleaning to do. Not fun.

Since I don't like to dwell on the negative, I'll move onto a positive thing that happened this week. I finally got my car fixed. Well to be more accurate, I got it re-fixed. I'd had an accident a few years ago and the used bumper the body shop put on the car was red. It was painted blue but because the paint didn't stick very well, over time it started to peel. The work was guaranteed by the shop and the insurance so, since I've decided to sell the car I had to get it fixed. Well, I picked up the car on Monday and it looks great. All it needs now is a good cleaning inside and out and it'll be ready to sell.

As my lil' bean's birthday approaches, I decided it was time to get moving on the whole cloth diaper thing. Paul & I were up for trying it out and so I finally put in an order for our starter kit. We ordered them from Babywear Boutique and were able to pick them up on Saturday. Steph was such a great help and very patient with all our questions. If you're in the Halton region and what to try cloth diapering I suggest getting in contact with her. We're using Bummies prefolds and covers for now and they are too cute. We also ordered a BabyHawk carrier which still hasn't come in but I'm sure it won't be much longer.

After picking up our diapers, Paul & I were off to Home Depot to pick up some important items for the nursery. Originally it was just paint but after spending some time in the store we left with paint, a rug, and a new light fixture shaped as a plane. The plane thing was all Paul's idea but now that it's up, I love it. I haven't taken any pictures yet but I promise to have some soon. So as of now our nursery is an empty room with a painted ceiling and a new light fixture. At least we're getting somewhere! And I'm sure it'll be done soon considering Paul's soooo excited about this lil' bean. And of course while Paul was working hard, I was catching up on my reading. No more pregnancy books though. I've had enough of those and have graduated to breastfeeding books. Dr. Jack Newman's Guide to Breastfeeding to be exact. I'd first heard of Dr. Newman on PregTASTIC and found his views on breastfeeding refreshing. I'd always known that breast milk was best but I had no idea that there was such a bonding experience that takes place between mom and baby. And to top it off, Dr. Newman was homegrown in the GTA. He worked as a paediatrician at the Hospital for Sick Children (among others), and is now a leading lactation expert working out of Newman Breastfeeding Clinic and Institute based at the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine in Toronto. He's got a great website you should check out. I'm only a few chapters in but I can see how passionate he is about breastfeeding and I like it!

And finally, my lil' bean is quickly sprouting. He should weigh about 6 pounds which is as much as a crenshaw melon, and is longer than 18.5 inches long. He is still shedding lanugo and is loosing some of the vernix that covers his skin. These will build up in his intestines to produce meconium. Other than that this lil' guy is almost done baking!

35 Weeks

Time is really flying now. I can't believe my lil' guy will be here so soon. I'm not scared or worried, but I am curious about the whole labour and delivery thing. Sometimes I try to picture what it will be like and the first thought that comes to mind is me breathing like mad, in some awkward position, trying to alleviate the worst pain I've ever felt. And that might not be too far from the truth but it sure is kinda funny to me...for now.

I've got 3 more weeks left of work but I'm not the only one counting down the days. Gail works the day shift and unfortunately she's going on short term disability a week after me because of some surgery she's got to have. Patricia will be her replacement for the 6 - 8 weeks she'll be off. Pat's been with the company for a number of years and knows how to QC but she's been working on the floor at our warehouse for more than a year now. And since she's been gone we've changed how things are done. So she started her training this week and will be working with Gail until she's off. Which is great for Gail because she's having a hard time moving around. Extra help is always appreciated.

This week I saw the midwife again. There was a few routine things we discussed and then she checked my vitals. Blood pressure is still low, my iron levels are good and she took a look at my swelling feet. Although I wasn't worried about it, she did put Paul at ease. He was starting to get worried because they had begun to swell a lot some days. She informed him that this late in pregnancy it was very normal for feet to swell, especially since I worked on my feet. She said that keeping them elevated as much as possible and a massage at the end of the day would do some good to keep the blood circulating. After that she checked on our lil' bean and surprise, surprise...he's still head down, in the same position he's been in for the last two months. His heart rate is good and my fundal height is still normal.

Saturday was our last birthing class and I can officially say that it was a waste of time & money. I should have taken the class as soon as I was out of my first trimester and maybe I wouldn't have been so disappointed. All the stuff we learned, I had already read about. We didn't cover anything different and to make matters worse, she didn't do anything more than just slightly touch on each topic. The only exception was labour and delivery, and even then there wasn't too much info. She never elaborated on the different positions a woman could choose to labour and deliver, and it seemed she was always under the assumption that we were all seeing OBGYN's. Anyways, I'm glad it's over and I can go back to my usual Saturday morning routine...sleeping!

Sunday was mothers day and thanks to Paul I was able to unofficially celebrate it. I wasn't expecting anything and he did surprise me with a pair of earrings. Diamond butterfly studs to be exact. They are beautiful and I have yet to take them off. As for celebrating with my mom, my sister and I took her out for breakfast. We originally wanted to go to the Pancake Factory but when we got there, the line was out the door. Their pancakes are good, but not that good! So we settled on Angel's and decided to go back for pancakes another day.

To finish off the weekend, Paul started moving all his office stuff downstairs. He's got 95% of it down there and it seems to be all organized. This now means we have half a nursery, yay! Hopefully my office will be moved downstairs next weekend and we can start on having a full room for the baby.

Speaking of which, he now weighs as much as a honeydew melon, about 5.25 pounds. His length is over 18 inches and still growing. His kidneys are complete and his liver is processing waste. His fingernails now reach the tip of his fingers and most of his development is complete. He will spend the rest of his time gaining weight. It is getting kinda snug in there so he has stopped his summersaults but hasn't stopped moving. I can feel him stretch his arms, legs and turn his head. I'm enjoying every moment of it too!

24 Weeks

I know I know...where's 23 weeks? Well, it couldn't be helped. I was on my baby moon last week and didn't have internet access. And it was good! I've decided to put 23 & 24 weeks in one post so I hope you're comfortable 'cause it's gonna be a long one. I suppose I'll continue with my vacation which was exactly what I needed. I only got a few days off for the Christmas holiday and prior to that, my last week off was in September. We dropped the dogs off at my in-laws Sunday afternoon, had a quick lunch with them and then we were on our way. It took us about 3 hours to drive to Wiarton and by the time we got there it was dark. We didn't have a problem finding the place but there was no way to see what was around us. We spent that evening unpacking and getting comfortable, aka snooping! After checking out the place we decided that dinner was going to be simple and quick. We got into the truck and drove the 9km to town. We ordered a pizza & garlic strips from New Orleans and headed back. I'll never order from them again. It was too saucy and doughy. So after dinner & a movie was...another movie! We raided the library shelves before we left so we had plenty to choose from.

Day 2 started with a hearty breakfast of bacon, eggs, toast & a tall glass of milk. We watched the Olympic games while we ate then headed into town to do our shopping for the week. That took us a whole hour and once we were back and everything was put away, I wasn't sure what to do. I decided to do my cross stitching and continued that for the next couple hours while watching season 1 of Sex and the City. Lunch followed and then back to cross stitching and Sex and the City. Paul tried to set up a painting station for his little men but that didn't work out to well. The sun began setting soon after he started painting and then the lamps didn't give off enough light. And to top if off, he hadn't brought his desk light. So after a short struggle he gave up and started a fire in the wood burning stove. Dinner was next and then we cuddled on the couch for a few movies.

The rest of the week was similar. I would usually be the first one up. I grabbed a book and read in the morning sun until Paul woke up. Breakfast and some Olympics followed. Cross stitching and painting until lunch. Then it was Sex and the City or True Blood until dinner. Board games, fires and movies were the evenings agenda. We did go into town later in the week to pass some time and check out the little shops. There wasn't much there though. One evening we spent some time feeling our lil' bean move around. He was so active that we could see my belly moving! We also spent some time walking in the woods around the cottage. We tried to guess what kind of animals made the various tracks we saw in the snow. We had a great relaxing week and I only wish we could do it more often.

As for other news, this baby is in constant motion. It seems he's always on the move when I'm sitting and sleeps through all my moving around. I love it! And so does my mother-in-law. We went out for coffee with my in-laws one day and my lil' bean was moving around quite a bit. She asked if she could feel him and of course I figured he would immediately stop once she felt my belly, but he didn't. She got a few good kicks and it was so exciting. What I'm not excited about is the back ache that's started, which I'm sure has to do with me being on my feet all day. It's not too bad right now so I think I've got to be more diligent with doing yoga in hopes that it won't get any worse. And of course taking a seat every few hours at work.

Another unavoidable travesty is the fact that it's getting harder to bend over. My belly isn't very big and I'm already adjusting my pose when I need to put my shoes on. It's not too awkward right now but I'm not looking forward to tying my shoes at 35 weeks! But I guess that's what family and friends are for lol.

Some doctor news this week has to do with my optometrists and my midwife. I'll be seeing my midwife in a few days and we'll be going over my ultrasound results. I'm sure everything will be fine but it's always good to be reassured. I also went to see my optometrists this week and although she noticed I was pregnant without me saying anything :) and everything is fine, I was a little disappointed with her. She's a great doctor but a horrible story teller. She's got two kids of her own and by her own admission, she can't tolerate pain. She told me that at her first prenatal doctor's appointment she asked when she should book for her scheduled cesarean section. And of course the doctor talked her out of it but she wasn't happy about it. She went on to repeatedly describe labour as the "most horrible pain you'll ever feel". Especially back labour, which is what she went through. She didn't have anything good to say about it. Not even the usual "it's horrible but worth it once you're holding your baby". Now don't get me wrong, i'm not ignorant to the fact that it's going to really, really, really hurt, but come on. You don't go on for 10 minutes telling a pregnant lady how horrible childbirth is without reassuring her it's all worth it. Or at the very least give her something positive to take away from your experience. And then to top it off, she told me "you'll know you're done having kids when you spot a mother dealing with a crying baby or changing an explosive diaper and you're happy it isn't you". Kinda makes me wonder what kind of grandma she's gonna be??

Well, let's change the topic to some administrative stuff. I've registered for prenatal classes at the hospital. They start on May 1st and are two consecutive Saturdays. I've also registered for our PreBirth clinic which involves filling out hospital forms and spending some time with a nurse. This will give us an opportunity to ask her questions if we have any.

As for us getting ready for baby...I've started thinking about it! I've been mulling over nursery ideas but still haven't decided on something for sure. I'm leaning towards a colour scheme of blue, green and brown. I'd also like to incorporate frogs into the mix. As a kid Paul was the "frog catcher" and I thought it'd be nostalgic to include it in our son's room. I've gathered some pics for inspiration and any comments and ideas would be appreciated.


And for the star of the blog...my lil' bean is now the length of an ear of corn. He is having REM sleep which may include dreams. The bones of the inner ear are starting to harden and all the noises he's hearing will be familiar to him once he's born. No need to worry about the barking dogs scaring him. He'll be used to it by then. He's gaining a little more fat and his lungs have started to develop surfactant. This will allow them to expand once he's born and theres also blood vessels forming in them. White blood cells have started production in order to fight infections and diseases and his brain is growing quickly. The fingernails are now completely formed and eyelashes have started to grow. Can't wait to meet this little guy.